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Letter to parents September 14, 2009 Welcome to Brookside! As I begin my fourth year as Brookside's principal, I am excited to see our returning and new students, and am energized by the challenges we face. Our students continue to achieve academically at high levels. It is our mission to support all students in reaching their full potential. That mission requires efforts on many fronts. Here in our own community we have amazing support. Brookside PTA again had 100% membership last year, and continues to win many Washington State PTA awards. I see parent, community, college and high school volunteers here every day, yet we never have too many! Every classroom finds useful and varied activities for treasured volunteers. The Brookside teaching and support staff are remarkable. They demonstrate their commitment and excitement in so many ways. The office, playground, library, and food service staff, as well as our family advocate, nurse and instructional assistants provide an additional layer of support for our students and families. They are vital to the success of our students. I invite you to look at the websites of our teachers, and read their newsletters. Yet remember, their primary focus is their students’ learning, professional preparation, collaboration and development, and parent communication. They update websites as time allows. We know that technology is ever-present in the lives of today's youth. All fifth and sixth graders have access to a personal laptop during the day. Under the close supervision of our teachers, students are using them as learning tools in important and innovative ways. We will continue to take advantage of our Technology Integration Specialist to learn how to design and implement integrated lessons and projects with students of all ages. Last year we welcomed students who have significant learning challenges to our school. These students are in our 2 self-contained special education classrooms most of the day. However they are also included in a variety of activities in our general education classes, as well as at assemblies, recess and lunch. Such interaction benefits all our students, and we consider it a privilege to have a diverse student population, which more closely resembles our society. Thank you for visiting our website. Take a look around. I hope you can see that we have an excellent school, thanks to the close partnership between our quality staff, our dynamic community, and the strong history of excellence that the Shoreline School District continues to enjoy. |